Back Country Ice Fishing in Ultimate Comfort - All Terrain Bear Hunts
Just outside Thompson, Manitoba, All Terrain Bear Hunts offers an exclusive winter ice fishing adventure on a remote lake, accessible only by boat or a plowed ice road. Surrounded by the rugged beauty of the Canadian Shield’s rock outcroppings and the tranquil boreal forest, guests can enjoy stunning northern lights displays and the occasional wolf sightings.
The main lodge provides a cozy retreat with wood-fired warmth and hearty meals, while the guest cabin offers comfortable accommodations. A stone's throw from the cabin, a permanent ice shack sits on the frozen lake, complete with Wi-Fi, a TV, and a wood fire. It offers a cozy and comfortable fishing spot. Here, you can experience incredible multi-species ice fishing just a few steps away from the warmth of the cabin, surrounded by the breathtaking wilderness of the North.
Returning to All Terrain bear Hunts
Back in 2019, I had the pleasure of going on a bear hunting trip to Cory Grant’s All Terrain Bear Hunts. It’s a fantastic, boat-to operation near Thompson, Manitoba with a beautiful camp and awesome bear hunting. It was an incredible trip and I was able to harvest my biggest black bear to date. It was an amazing experience and Cory was a great host. On our trip, before heading to the bear stand for the day, we spent our mornings on the boat crushing walleyes right in front of camp. It was the best.
Fast-forward a few years, and now Cory has entered the ice fishing market as well. Intrigued, my buddy Keevin and I had the opportunity to head North and check it out for ourselves. So, at the beginning of January, we loaded the truck and headed for Thompson.
Journey to the North
The drive to Thompson is much more relaxed and enjoyable than it used to be. There’s pavement for the entire 760 kilometer drive from Winnipeg and it’s smooth sailing. Not far from Thompson, you turn off the highway and make your way down a road that becomes more and more secluded. On this drive, you really get the feeling that you’re exploring new country with some great views. There’s a beautiful bridge you cross at one point that's breathtaking. Eventually, you arrive at the lake, and that’s when you’re greeted by one of the best parts about getting to Cory’s lodge in the winter. He plows an ice road from the access point all the way to the lodge. So, in the middle of nowhere, you get to this secluded lake, and then you just hop on what feels like an ice interstate all the way to the lodge and just like that, you’re there.
Settling into Camp
The ease of driving straight from home all the way to the lodge is amazing. We walked our gear all of 20 yards into our cabin and we were moved in. The camp is stunning in the winter. The wood heat in the main lodge is homey and the cabin where you sleep is comfortable and for just two of us, incredibly spacious. When I was there for the bear hunt, we had some gorgeous evenings, sitting around the fire, and it was beautiful. Now, here in the winter, I’m not even sure which one I prefer.
Ultimate Comfort in the most Remote of Settings
The real party piece to Cory’s ice fishing product is the permanent ice shack that he built. First of all, it’s big, with four ice fishing holes. It has bench-style seating at the far end and comfortable lawn chairs for the other holes. It has a brand-new wood stove in the middle that keeps it toasty warm and a fan to move the air around.
At the other end of the shack, there’s a tabletop with a coffee maker, plug-ins, and snacks. Above that, is the flatscreen TV. The TV is great; what’s really great is that Cory had his StarLink installed on the shack, so we had unlimited high-speed internet in there as well. So, we were able to watch NHL games in the evening and YouTube in the afternoons, it was incredible.
Let the Fishing Begin
Although the shack is fantastic, an ice fishing shack is only as good as the spot it's on. You can have all the internet in the world, but if you aren’t catching fish, it's not going to be as fun. Well, there’s no problems there, that’s for sure. When we first got to the shack, Keevin sat down and as I was unpacking and organizing, he was ready so he dropped a line. I’m pretty sure in the 5 minutes I spent unpacking, he caught 3 fish, two were perch and one walleye. I hadn’t even dropped a line yet!
Multi-Speices Ice Fishing
The waterbody that All Terrain Bear Hunt's lodge and ice fishing shack are on is part of the Grass River which is incredibly diverse. There are a range of species that you can catch and we caught a good portion of them in our two days of fishing. We caught walleye, perch, northern pike, sauger, burbot, and even a surprise Master Angler Tullibee!
The fish seemed to move in waves. We would pick the odd one off here and there and then all of a sudden we’d catch 6-8 in a row in a short amount of time. We also caught them on a huge range of lures. Cory fished with us and he caught most of his fish on a jig and a minnow, Keevin spent most of his time with a lipless crankbait, and I was all over the place and we all caught a lot of fish.
Remote Wilderness & Watching the Hockey Game
We’re all big Winnipeg Jets fans and two of the 3 nights that we spent there the Jets played and what a treat it was to watch the games in the shack. To be able to watch them at all out in the bush is a treat but to be able to watch them on the lake while we are catching fish is simply unbelievable. We have some fish photos with the game in the background and you can’t really draw up an evening much better than that.
Comfortable Accommodations
At the end of the night, whenever you decide to stop fishing, you simply hop on your truck, drive 400 yards and you’re parked right in front of your cabin. The ease is what really makes the trip so enjoyable. It’s comfortable in the shack and the camp is right there.
The next morning, it's much of the same thing. You hop in the truck, drive 1 minute to the shack, and Cory already had the stove going so it was nice and warm. You can go right into fishing and Cory had fresh coffees ready to go and breakfast was next. Right in front of us, he whipped up eggs, bacon, sausage, toast, you name it. Doesn’t get much more convenient than that.
More Than Just Fishing
We crushed fish all day and toward the evening, Cory invited some local friends of his to join us for the evening bite. Several friends and families came out and enjoyed the resource and we made some new friends along the way. As you could expect, being Canadian, the kids loved their hockey and knowing this, Cory plows a rink right in front of the lodge so some important games of shinny can take place. As we fished, the kids grabbed their sticks and did what so many Canadian kids do and have fun and play hockey.
There are also several other winter activities that can be done from Cory’s camp. Whether it’s hiking, snowshoeing, snowmobiling or even wolf hunting, there’s lots of ways you enjoy his camp in the winter months. I love my fishing but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about how fun a snowmobile trip would be using Cory’s lodge as a home base. Maybe next year.
One of a Kind Ice Fishing Experience
All Terrain Bear Hunts have a very unique ice fishing experience. It’s rare and almost unheard of to have an outpost style ice fishing product. Cory will only ever book one group at a time so you have the lake, lodge, and cabin to yourself and therefore have the traditional outpost experience, but in the form of ice fishing. Therefore, if you’re the type of group that wants privacy, wants seclusion, and your own space, All Terrain Bear Hunts could be the perfect place for your next ice fishing trip.
To book your ice fishing adventure with All Terrain Bear Hunts, visit the All Terrain Bear Hunts Website.
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12 Robinson Way Thompson, MB R8N 0M1 (204) 679-0735 Website